The Last Thing I Need Is You
by GABS03
Summary: Draco/ Hermione Set five years after the war. Hermione and Draco both work in the Ministry and much to their distaste, are assigned to work together. What will happen when this unlikely pair are forced to put up with each other in order for them both to prove themselves and solve a case? A little bit of adventure, danger and eventually a lot of romance on the cards.
1. Chapter 1

**Hi everyone! Very very new at all of this. I hope this will be okay, I know it won't be the best thing you've ever read but I am really excited about this and I just need to get it started and moving, if you could all be patient with me. More to come as soon as i possibly can! All reviews and ideas are welcome and very much ****appreciated**** 3 **

Hermione sighed as she walked into the ministry, cup of tea in her hand, hair pinned back in her usual messy bun, taking a sip of her tea as she pressed the button to go up in the lift. She had been working in the Ministry of Magic pretty much since she finished Hogwarts. It wasn't as easy as that though. At first, she had struggled to fit in here. She still had the reputation of being the 'brightest witch of her age' and the whole 'Golden Trio' thing hanging over her head, thus making expectations high from her superiors, which was already a lot of pressure.

First of all, she had started out in the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures, during which she created her S.P.E.W programme to help House Elves find freedom. Hermione enjoyed working there but it never really clicked with her - she needed something more. After that she had also dabbled in the Department of Magical Accidents and Catastrophes- mainly for selfish reasons, though. She wanted to try and find out more information about the obliviate spell and if there was a way for her to help her parents get their memories back but the little positive information she found resulted in a lack of motivation and interest in her job. More recently, however, a couple of months ago, she had been moved to the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, having been specifically requested by Robards himself, claiming some of his Aurors needed help from her brains when it came to unpicking and solving cases.

This was her favourite job so far. She had the chance at helping people first hand and putting her busy mind and the skills she had picked up in her teenage years to good use. The other reason this was her favourite job yet was because she got to see Harry everyday. Seeing him everyday helped ease her mind when she started thinking about how so much had changed in the five years since the war. She rarely seen Ronald these days - other than family dinners at the Burrow and Christmas.

Her and Ron had gotten together after the war had ended and things seemed good for a while. It was everything she had wanted since she was fourteen but to her greatest disappointment, it never lived up to their expectations. After the war everyone and everything was damaged. They'd all lost so many people and experienced such a large amount of pain - physical and mentally- in such a short space of time. Her and Ron both took comfort in each other on those cold nights when the nightmares would hit but after a while it all got too much. He had started to lean on her more and Hermione couldn't handle her own heartbreak, let alone his as well. She had no more room in her heart for anymore pain and being with Ronald was just too much. So she forced herself to let him go, so that she could try and heal as much as possible.

Even now, around four years later, Ronald had never really forgiven her for their break up, and Hermione could understand that. He'd supposed they would eventually get married, have a few red headed, know-it-all, little ones and grow old together, because that's how everyone told them it would be. Merlin, even Hermione always thought that's how it would turn out. But here she was, five years later, still feeling as lost and alone as she did, however, she was just a lot better at hiding it than before.

Hermione stepped into the elevator and pressed the button for level 2. She cringed as she caught her reflection in the mirror. She had slept in this morning and had to get ready in a rush resulting in barely any makeup, puffy eyes and slightly messy updo.

As the doors were closing, a shirt clad arm quickly stopped them from closing and as they slid back open, in stepped Draco Malfoy. He looked as unhappy to see her as she was sure she looked to see him.

"Granger." He mumbled as he fixed his satchel on his shoulder and pulled it tighter to his side, attempting to avoid even looking at her.

"Malfoy." She replied, pressing her lips into a thin line as she stared down at the floor in order to stop herself glaring at the git.

Even now, they were still fighting to be the best at what they were doing. Their spats and quarrels from their teenage years over who was the smartest and who got the best grades had continued into their adult life were they both tried ever so hard to be better than the other at their job. He had started working here a couple of years after the war had ended. She didn't understand how he managed to get a job here, saying he was Voldemorts bloody flatmate at one point- the thought sending shivers down her spine as she remembered the events that happened at Malfoy Manor. Although, she thought, things had gone quiet for him. It seemed he had distanced himself from the Pureblood society and his family. Maybe he had finally grown out of his stupid, digusting and incorrigable beliefs that sparked him making her life a misery for the enterity of her time at Hogwarts. However, deep down she couldn't help but know that she had to consider the thought that those views were not his to begin with- they were forced upon him.

Hermione looked over at him. He had stopped over styling his hair with way too much gel products and started wearing his hair more fluffy and more delicately styled - at least there was one thing to praise him for. He looked tired, she thought. The darkness under his eyes contrasted against his pale skin in the dull elevator lighting.

He stared hard at the doors "Stop bloody staring at me, Granger." He said. "Its fucking creepy." He sneered at her and as soon as the doors opened and he was out, before she could bite back with an equally rude response.

She huffed "I was not staring." She mumbled to herself and made her way towards her desk and popped her bag down and plopped down on her seat, taking a long sip of her tea, letting the hot liquid burn down her throat. She had a lovely pile of paperwork staring at her, with a note from Robards:

"_Miss Granger, _

_Some case reports i need you to look over- just the usual. Also - meeting in my office at 2. - R"_

Robards entrusted her with a lot of the important paperwork, claiming she was the best in the department for this sort of stuff. She glanced up and caught Harry's eye as he walked to his desk and gave him a small wave and mouthed a 'good morning' to him, taking another quick sip of tea before getting started on all her work.

* * *

Draco huffed as he sat down at his desk. If he was being honest, he really could not be arsed with all of this anymore. This would just be another day of having a boring case report about a stolen broomstick or lost wand. He glared over at Granger. She had been there two and a half bloody months and Robards treated her like she was some kind of bloody brainiac goddess. Draco knew he deserved better, knew he was more intelligent than half of the other Aurors. What even was Granger here to do, she was 'working with the aurors' but not an Auror. Draco scoffed: Robards little kiss arse secretary pet.

After two years of hiding away in his flat, being scared of being seen by anyone, Draco decided to make a change in his life and feel like maybe for once he was doing the right thing. The aftermath of the war was tough and his father was too much of a coward to handle it. After his passing, Draco and his mother moved out of the manor, him into his London flat and his mother into her country cottage out of the way from everyone. He barely kept in touch with any of his old school friends- except Blaise-, most of whom were married to other purebloods in order to 'keep the tradition alive'. Draco found it all to be nonsense now. What was the point. Blood purity was no longer a factor in any normal wizards mind anymore- and to be honest wasn't a factor in his head anymore either. Perhaps he had just grown out of the nonsense that was pureblood society. Asa result he completely distanced himself from the society and his family, hoping perhaps to make a better name for himself, even if no one could take him seriously anymore. He managed to get himself this job and he had been here ever since. The only thing was he was bored. He knew he was more than paperwork and filing case reports. He begged Robards everyday for something more interesting but he was always hit with a 'maybe' or a 'patience is a virtue, Mr Malfoy."

Draco started on a report and noticed a note on his desk.

"_meeting at 2 - R"_

He raised a brow. Maybe today would finally be his lucky day.

* * *

Two eventually came and Hermione made her way to Robards office for their meeting. She knocked on his door gently and walked inside. Inside she seen Robards sitting at his desk - and Malfoy?

"Ah Miss Granger, have a seat." Robards said and Hermione slowly sat down and glanced at Malfoy who did not look impressed at her presence. "Now, both of you have shown you are both very intelligent people and after some consideration I have decided to make you both partners for this case." He said holding up a file. "I understand that neither of you have worked on an important case like this yet, but I feel as though by putting your two brains together we might have something rather effective here."

Hermione's eyes shot open and she sat up straighter. She had been partnered with Malfoy. Wonderful. Just what she needed. She tried to hide her annoyance from Robards as best she could but it was difficult. She glanced to her left to look at Malfoy and he had his typical sneer on his face, and robards seemed to notice his distaste too.

"Now Mr Malfoy I thought you'd be happy about this? You have been asking me to trust you with your own case for months." Robards chuckled as he handed them both a file each.

Malfoy opened the file "Well yes, I thought maybe I'd get to lead this on my own. That's all" he mumbled "Thank you for the opportunity, Sir" Draco said and tried to keep his cool as much as possible.

"Now, like I said, this is an important case." Robards started. "There is a wizard named William Bennett. He's been on a dark wizard watchlist of ours for a while. We believe he is a danger to our society. Now it appears recently he has went off the grid and we've noticed a list of murders across England that all fit in with his disappearance- and we believe these murders may be down to him." Robards took a sip from his coffee mug. "I'll need you guys working on this every day until we find some answers. Everything you need to know is in the files." he said and looked between them. "I do hope you both will cooperate as well as possible with each other, I am trusting you both here." He said as he stood up and both Draco and Hermione nodded in agreement.

"I have another meeting to go to. Read through the files and if you have any questions please feel free to owl me." He said as he left them alone in his office.

Draco huffed and stuffed his file into his bag. This was bloody ridiculous. He had been here nearly three fucking years and Granger had barely been here five minutes. He deserved this way more than her and when he figured it out he definitely did not need the bloody Gryffindor golden girl stealing his thunder.

Hermione glared at Draco as she stood up. "You know what? I'm not too happy about this either Malfoy. There's no point throwing a huff over it" She said as she picked up her bag "But understand this now, I'm not going to let you ruin my reputation here." She said and pulled on her blazer and smoothed her skirt out.

Draco laughed at her words and her equally stupid tone "What reputation? The one of you being a kiss arse and Robards little pet? Believe me, I'll try my best not to take _that _title from you" he rolled his eyes and headed out of the office and back to his desk to try and get a head start on the case.

Draco groaned and rubbed his eyes with the heels of his hands. "Merlin give me strength." He mumbled to himself. He was going to need all the help he could get if he was going to have to keep his temper at bay with Granger.

* * *

That night Hermione brewed herself a steaming cup of hot chocolate and got herself all comfy on her couch so she could start reading the file Robards had given her that day. She looked around at her cosy little apartment. She supposed she was lucky. She was safe with a roof over her head and friends who were like family. Still, she couldn't help but feel like something was missing. She assumed the emptiness in her heart came from missing her parents but she still tried to remain hopeful that one day she would be able to return their memories to them.

Crookshanks jumped up beside her, purring for attention, pulling her out of her thoughts and she smiled and gave her a quick scratch on the head.

She stayed there curled on the couch for the rest of the night, reading over every single bit of the information in the file again and again to make sure she had everything straight in her mind. There had been three deaths over the past few months and they all linked to this Bennet man. Surely this would be straightforward- find Bennet; find the answers.

Hermione made notes and started her research, making sure everything was clear and organised. She was going to kick arse at this case because she wanted to prove that not even Malfoy could stop her from being good at this job. She needed a win. She hadn't had one in a while.

* * *

Draco threw himself on the couch as soon as he got home. He was already drained and he hasn't even started working with Granger yet. He wanted to do well so bloody badly so that people in the ministry would finally look past the burden that was his name, and realise he could actually be really good at this job. Merlin, he just didn't need Granger ruining this chance for him.

Anyone else. He could have worked decently well with anyone else but he just didn't have the patience for her and her know-it-all, better-than-everyone-else attitude that he had loathed since first year. He needed this case. This case could get him somewhere. He needed a win. He'd never won anything before.


	2. Chapter 2

**Hi all! Thank you to everyone who bothered to read the first chapter. This fanfic i already a change because it has the element of mystery which i am definitely not good with. So, apologies if this is rubbish. I really do appreciate seeing people reading this so THANK YOU TO THE PERSON READING THIS RIGHT NOW. I would love to hear some feedback so please please comment and review!. I promise this will start to get more exciting -and juicy ;) -soon. I will try my best to get Chapter 3 up within the next few days. ****Much love! xx**

* * *

Hermione woke up the next morning on her couch, notebook lying on her chest and notes splayed all across her living room. She groaned and rubbed her eyes glancing at the clock on her wall. She'd managed to actually wake up with an hour to get ready for work, without an alarm. Impressive. She huffed as she got up, stretching as she made her way to the shower. As the hot water hit her skin, she let out a soft sigh, the water soothing her sore muscles from her night on the couch. She prayed today would go okay. Hopefully her and Draco could survive a day of working without one of them killing the other. She hummed to herself as she massaged the shampoo into her scalp letting the soothing feeling take over for a while, allowing her mind to slow down and for her to just stop thinking for a moment. As she rinsed the shampoo from her hair, she tried to stop worrying about work. It was only a job. Do not let Malfoy get to you, she kept scolding herself.

She was already dreading working with him and they hadn't even started yet.

* * *

As Hermione walked towards her desk, clutching her usual cup of tea, she noticed Malfoy already sitting at his desk, with his head buried in his work. She walked over cautiously and glanced at his notebook he was scribbling words into.

"I take it you read the file." Hermione pulled out her own notes as Malfoy looked up at her.

"Uh huh." He simply replied and went back to scribbling more notes down.

Hermione rolled her eyes. Git.

"Well, what do you think?" She asked and she leaned against his desk trying to get a look at what he was writing.

Malfoy huffed. He could do this on his own, he didn't need _her_ bloody chiming in every twenty seconds with questions and opinions.

Hermione scoffed. Childish git. "Well,_ I _think we look into Bennett's associates and their recent contacts. Bennett definitely isn't in London anymore, that's for sure."

Malfoy scoffed "No shit Sherlock." He sneered and he glanced up at her and put his pen down. "Well done in stating the absolute obvious." He huffed and ran his hand through his hair. Merlin give him the patience to handle this.

"If you're going to be rude, I can research this on my own, at my own desk." She said and crossed her arms with a huff. He was just an incorrigible, ill mannered, twat. She didn't need his snide inputs and sneers- she'd already experienced her fair share of this at Hogwarts.

"_Oh no." _Draco gasped overdramatically, the sarcasm clear in his tone. "How would _I_ even _handle_ that." He looked at her with a wide mouth, clearly taking the piss and enjoying every moment of it.

Hermione scoffed and stormed over to her desk and threw her stuff down. Twat. Prick. Git.

He was impossible. She just couldn't and wouldn't deal with him.

* * *

For the next week, things didn't change between the partners. Hermione said as little as possible to Draco and Draco said barely anything to Hermione. Neither of them had found any leads yet and it was beginning to stress both of them out.

It was a Thursday afternoon when Robards called them into his office for a 'chat'.

Robards sighed and looked between them. "It's been over a week since I assigned this case to you both, and no progress has been made whatsoever." Robards sighed and stood up, crossing his arms over his chest. "I think the pair of you think I'm a fool. Don't think I haven't been keeping an eye on how you have been working together. Did you think I wouldn't realise you haven't been working together at all?" Robards shook his head and sat back down "There is a reason I assigned this case to _both_ of you. It's a complicated case. I thought I could trust you both with it. _Clearly_ I was wrong."

Hermione scowled at Draco. This was his fault. She hated letting people down. She wanted to do well for Robards, but of course Malfoy had ruined that chance for her.

"I'm sorry Sir." Draco spoke up. No. No way was he letting Granger destroy his first proper chance at moving up in his career. "You're right, we haven't been very cooperative and please, before you take me- _us-_ off of this case, give us another chance, I know I will put in all my effort to make this work." Draco cringed at himself. He noticed Hermione rolling her eyes and he held back the sneer about to take over his features. If he wanted this chance, he needed to prove he could work with her. But they'd do it on his terms. He knew he was the more experienced- and may he add _actually trained-_ one here.

Robards looked between them, taking a long sip from his coffee. Hermione frowned and wrung her hands together, waiting for Robards to drop them both from the case.

"_One_ more chance." Robards said slowly. "I want to see progress this week. And the two of you better start getting along. I want you to sit at the same desk for the remainder of this case. You are partners for a reason. Now go and get to work. I don't want to hear any complaints about this." He said and he stood up, turning his back to them to file away some things in his cabinet.

Draco stood up "Thank you for the second chance, I- _we_ won't let you down" He said and he picked up his satchel, before giving a Granger a scowl. He left and headed to his desk to clear some space for Granger. He wasn't going to ruin this. He was going to prove he was a good Auror, no matter what he had to do.

Hermione looked up at Robards after Malfoy left "I'm sorry I let you down Sir, Malfoy and I, just- we struggle to see eye to eye." She said with a grimace "But I promise I won't let you down again." She said, taking a deep breath, fidgeting with her hands.

Robards looked up at her and smiled a bit and gave her a nod "I know Miss Granger." He said and she smiled a bit and left his office, heading to her desk to grab her notes and research. She glanced over at Draco who seemed to have cleared a space for her at his desk and pulled over another chair. She sighed and gathered her stuff up and walked over to his desk, dumping everything down. He looked up at her, completely unimpressed as she slunped into her chair.

Draco handed her a large file "Here's all my research so far." He said "I think we should spend today reading and comparing information and then tomorrow make a good, solid start." He looked at her and Hermione nodded.

"Okay," She said and quickly sorted through her research and notes and organised it all for Malfoy. "Here you go and slid the large pile across the desk to him.

"Merlin, Granger." He said looking at the pile of notes in front of him. "You definitely are thorough." He said and ran his hand down his face as he started on the first page. Hermione looked up at him and just shrugged.

And that's how they stayed for the rest of the day. In silence, reading each other's research.

* * *

The next day Draco came into the department prepared. He could handle this. If he could handle the shite he dealt with in the past, he could handle working with Granger. Draco had a plan. He'd spent all night researching and he was actually kind of excited to start on it because he knew this was what he was good at. If this case went well for him, this could almost be a fresh start for him. He could be trusted with even more cases.

He walked into the office- _early_ may he add- and took a seat at his desk. He laid out the notes he had complied from his and Granger's notes and he smirked. Good luck beating me at this one Granger, he thought to himself. Draco heard Granger's heels clicking as she got closer to his desk and he spun round on his chair. She looked tired, he thought.

"Malfoy." She said as she placed her tea on the desk and shrugged off her black coat, the wooly fabric shining from the rain droplets on it.

"Sit down Granger." He said. She stifled a laugh and placed her coat over the back of her chair.

"I'm not a dog, Malfoy." She said "Sit down '_please'"_ She corrected as she slowly sat in her chair and reached for her tea, opening it up, letting the warm steam heat up her cold cheeks as she took a long sip.

"Look, I don't have time to squabble this morning." Draco huffed and he handed her some research and some pictures. "Look we both know I have first hand experience around people like Bennett. So, I know where people like him tend to gather and meet up." He said and smirked. "So I thought we could take a little trip tonight."

Hermione glanced over the notes and it didn't take her long to see it. Two words. Knockturn Alley. Her eyes widened "Are you mad?" She whispered "So you and I are just going to stroll down Knockturn alley - Golden Trio Girl and the Malfoy Heir?" She laughed and shook her head. "You really _are _mad." She said and took another sip of her tea.

"Look, Granger just hear me out. If we remain on the down low, keep our heads down, no one will even notice us." He said.

Hermione looked at him with furrowed brows "Malfoy, your hair is platinum blonde, you could be spotted from the moon. Unless you're offering me a gallon of Polyjuice Potion to drink before we go, there's no way we're risking ourselves like this. " She huffed, shaking her head as she read through the rest of the notes he had handed her.

"I'll wear a hat." He said. "Look I'm going whether you like it or not, but we're supposed to be a _team_ and it's not like we have any other ideas, do we?" He asked and Hermione's eyes caught his and she hesitated for a second.

"I suppose not, no." She said. She took another sip of her tea and sighed, thinking it through.

Malfoy looked right at her. "This job is about taking risks and being brave. I may not like you much Granger, but I don't think you're a coward." He said, trying to play on her Gryffindor values. "I mean, if you aren't willing to be brave and take risks, why are you even here?" He smirked and watched her cheeks turn red with annoyance.

Hermione ground her teeth together. Git.

"Fine, but the second there's any sign of danger, I'm apparating us out of there." She huffed and tucked her chair in to her desk more, arranging her side of the desk more neatly, a sharp contrast to Malfoys messy side.

"Granger this is the best chance at observing the type of people Bennett hangs around with and maybe finding out if anyone knows anything." He explained. "We have to start somewhere." He said and she glared at him. She absolutely hated that he was right.

"What time?" She asked, trying to hide her annoyance, biting her tongue from making any remarks about how much she couldn't stand the man sitting next to her.

"I shall pick you up at eight." He said. "Now, let's get started on a plan" He said with his signature smirk and she rolled her eyes and sighed. Stay calm. Just go with it.

* * *

Eight o'clock rolled around and Draco apparated outside the address Hermione had given him that day. It was pouring outside and was already dark. Autumn was coming is full swing this year. Draco pulled his black hat tighter over his head and pulled his coat tighter around himself. He quickly went inside and made his way up the stairs until he reached Hermione's flat. He knocked and waited, taking the time to clean the fake glasses he was wearing from the rain droplets. When the door opened Draco couldn't help it when his eyes shot wide open. She looked _different_. It was almost unsettling seeing the Griffindor princess in so much black. Draco noticed she had straightened her hair and tamed it with some sort of potion- must've been a strong one to tame that nest- and over the top she had pulled on a wooly black hat. The thing Draco noticed the most was the dark eye makeup she had applied that made her brown eyes pop. She hardly looked like herself. She shrugged on her long black coat and looked at him "So, do I look like one of the bad guys?" She asked and stepped out of her flat, patting her pocket to make sure she had her wand before closing the door and locking it behind her.

Draco shook his head "The baddest." He said and he looked her up and down, mildly impressed at her effort.

"I swear, if we end up in any sort of trouble tonight, Malfoy.." She started and shook her head as they headed out of her building. She glanced at him and huffed when he gave her his smirk again. Oh how she'd love to smack that smirk off of his face like she had done in third year.

"Shall we?" He asked and took out his wand and offered her his hand in order to apparate them there.

Hermione shook her head, "If you really think I trust you not to splinch me then you really must be crazy." She gave him a snide smile and quickly apparated herself to Knockturn alley and a few seconds later he appeared next to her.

They had discussed earlier that here they would be known as Etta Ravens and Oliver Crane and if anyone asked they were visiting from a small town outside of wizarding London. Hermione swallowed hard as she followed Draco into the small pub at the end of Knockturn Alley. It was dark and cold inside but surprisingly busy. Hermione took a deep breath, the smell of alcohol tickling her nose as she followed Draco to a table in a dark corner of the pub. Draco nodded at her and walked over to the bar, ordering two firewiskeys, keeping his head low and pulling his hat tight over his head. Once he got their drinks he strolled back to the table, looking around for any people of interest and slid a glass over to Granger. Surprisingly she took it and downed it in one. She did seem a little nervous.

Hermione felt the burn as the drink made its way down her throat. She was worried this would all take an awful turn and they'd both end up dead in a ditch somewhere. Draco looked at her and huffed. They couldn't just sit here in silence, that would only look strange.

"I didn't think Fire whiskey would be your drink, _Etta." _Draco caught her eye and smirked as he finished the rest of his own.

Hermione rolled her eyes and looked back at him. "It's not, but it's calming my nerves." She said and tucked a stray hair behind her ear.

Draco smirked. "I thought Griffindors were supposed to be brave?" He raised a brow with a smirk and just as she was about to argue back Hermione noticed Draco's eyes move to focus on the person who had just stepped in the door and she glanced over and her breath caught in her throat. A man called Harmon Mandrake had walked through the door. According to the file Robards had given them, Mandrake was as a close acquaintance of Bennetts. Mandrake was a strange looking man. Tall with defined facial features,with dark, long hair and a scar across his cheek from a spell. He slumped into a barstool nodding to the barman as he ordered his drink. Hermione caught Draco's eye from across the table and he gave her a knowing look. Well at least they knew _he_ was still in town.

Draco got them another drink and Hermione sipped hers slowly this time, wanting to keep her head clear. She was surprised at how good Draco was at this whole undercover thing. He didn't appear nervous at all. Although, Hermione had to consider the fact that he had grown up in this type of environment, surrounded by these types of people. Draco and Hermione tried to make small talk but they were both far too focused on what Mandrake was doing.

Hermione shuddered when she felt a large hand grip her shoulder. Shit. Had they been recognised? She felt the man's hot breath on her ear " So, pet. Is he your boyfriend or are you open to maybe coming home with me tonight?" He growled into her ear. It was one of the men who had been sitting with Mandrake. Draco set his jaw and slammed his glass down on the table. Hermione's face had gone white. As much as he couldn't stand the woman, he didn't enjoy seeing her so uncomfortable.

"Boyfriend." Draco said, looking at the man, tongue poking into his cheek. "I would suggest you take your hands off of her, wouldn't want to start a scene would we?" He asked and glared at the man through his fake glasses. The man was rather large and had multiple scars on his face and tattoos up his arms, but Draco tried to keep his cool.

The man laughed, "I don't believe I know you?" He let go of Hermione and walked over to Draco, his heavy footsteps creaking on the sticky, wooden floor. Draco looked up at him "Crane. Oliver Crane. Not from around here." He said and he put his hands in his pocket gripping his wand tightly, just in case.

"I see. Well, _Crane_, I'd suggest for next time, you watch your tone in here." The man growled before retreating back to his table, giving Hermione a final glance over. Draco let out a breath he didn't know he was holding and downed the rest of his drink.

"You alright over there?" Draco asked, noticing Hermione's pale face. Hermione gave him a nod and finished off her drink too and as Draco was about to speak, he noticed Mandrake leaving the pub.

Draco stood up and nodded subtly nodded towards the door. She nodded and stood up. Both left the pub as quietly as they had slipped in and followed silently behind Mandrake as the rain poured. If they could find out where Mandrake was staying, they might be able to find some clues as to where Bennet was.

Eventually, Mandrake led them to a dull and dreary looking town house and they hung back, watching as he walked inside. Hermione was soaked to the bone from the walk in the rain and Draco could see her shivering next to him. He sighed and looked at the time. It was almost midnight. Probably smart to finish up for tonight before anyone spotted them hanging around.

"Come on." Draco whispered and led Hermione round a corner and quickly took her arm, not allowing her anytime to stop him before he apparated them back outside her flat. She glared at him through the rain but to be honest she was just happy to be home without a scratch.

"That was quite a night." She said and looked a him. He let out a chuckle, the softness of the sound caught Hermione off guard.

"It sure was Granger." Draco said. "I'll see you tomorrow. Lots to discuss." He said before abruptly apparating away.

* * *

Once Hermione was showered and out of her wet clothes, finally tucked up safely in bed, she let out a breath she'd felt like she'd been holding in all night. This was definitely out of her comfort zone. But somehow the thrill was exciting.

And honestly? Her and Malfoy didn't make too awful of a team after all.


	3. Chapter 3

Hey all! Thank you for continuing to read my little story. Sorry it has taken me a while to update. But I'm back woo hoo. I hope you enjoy this little chapter. I finally feel like I can now get the story started and start with the romance ;)) Dramione is very nearby. Anyways, enjoy! Please please please leave reveiws for me to read because they give me the inspo to keep writing.

All my love,

G x

* * *

The next day, Draco headed into work with a spring in his step. Himself and Hermione had gotten their investigation off to a good start. At least he had some proof to show Robards he was good at doing his job. If this case started going well, maybe he could actually gain some respect from his colleagues. He'd finally be seen for the man he had grown up to be, rather than being seen as the mark on his arm. His biggest fear was always being seen as a death eater forever. As the bad guy. People still crossed to the other side of the road when they saw him coming.

Draco headed to his desk, sitting down, pulling a file he had compiled last night about Mandrake from his bag. He looked up when he heard the familiar sound of Granger's heels clicking.

"Granger." He greeted, only looking up when she placed a cup of tea in front of him. He looked up at her and then at the tea with a furrowed brow. She brought him tea. Why was she being nice? He shrugged it off, at least this way, she wasn't getting in the way of him figuring out this case.

Hermione shrugged and sat down "Thought you might need a cuppa this morning, after the long night last night." She said and took the lid off of her own cup of tea, smiling as the warm steam hit her face. "What's that?" She asked, nodding towards the file he had in his hands.

Draco looked at Hermione giving her a slight smile. He had to be grateful of the fact that Granger seemed to be putting her hostile opinion of him to one side in favour of the case. The golden girl wasn't paying attention to the fact she was working with someone who used to be her enemy. That's one thing he always admired about the girl. She never let anything stand in her way of doing what she wanted.

"It's all the information I could gather about Mandrake." Draco explained and handed Hermione the file. "Turns out, that house we followed him to last night, isn't listed as his home address, it isn't listed as anyone's home address actually, so, I think we need to do some more exploring." He said and looked at Hermione, sipping the tea she had gotten him. How did she know how he liked his tea?

Hermione nodded, placing her cup gently on the table. "Perhaps , if we got enough information we could bring Mandrake in for questioning." She said as she read through the file. Draco nodded, sliding his chair closer to hers so that they could look at the file together. Draco felt the scent of her perfume tickle his nose and he let himself enjoy the light rosey smell for a moment.

They discussed a plan of action, deciding that researching more of Bennetts associates would be a productive way to spend their day. While they were sitting in silence, Draco eating his lunch and Hermione writing up a report on last night for Robards, Hermione looked up at Draco and took a breath.

"Malfoy?" She said softly, biting her lip while anxiously tapping her pen against her notebook.

Draco looked up at her with a raised brow "Granger?" He took another bite of his sandwich, waiting for her response.

"I just wanted to say thank you, for last night." She said and looked over at him. She took note of his still confused look and continued. "When you got rid of that man who was bothering me in the pub." She said looking down at the paperwork in front of her. In that moment, she had come to the realisation that she couldn't remember the last nice thing she'd ever said to him. Merlin, she couldn't remember if either of them had _ever_ said anything nice to each other.

"Oh. That." He sighed and he looked over at her, putting his sandwich down. He took a deep breath and wiped the sandwich crumbs from his desk. "Look, Granger, I may struggle to stand you most days, but we are partners. We need to have each other's backs." Draco drummed his fingers on his knee. He couldn't believe he was about to say this. "As much as you are a bloody pain in the arse Granger, I'd never want to see you hurt."

Draco's mind took him back to that day in Malfoy Manor, watching the tears pouring down her cheeks and hearing her screams as his aunt used her arm as a canvas. And then there was the blood. The blood pouring down Granger's arm, dripping off of her fingertips. The clean, red blood. The blood that looked exactly like his. Not dirty, or muddy. Just deep, red, blood. He knew he was on the wrong side, then. That night still disturbed the deepest parts of his soul. Her cries and screams still echoed in his mind.

"You're right." Hermione nodded. Draco looked over at her. She really had grown up a lot. Her hair was shorter but the curls had been tamed and were softer and looser. Her skin was glowing and angelic and her lips were plump and pink. Her eyes barely showed the tiredness they both felt after their field trip last night and they still sparkled in that curious kind of way they always had. Merlin, she was _pretty_. A _pretty_ smart arse, know it all, thorn in his side. But he'd never let anyone know that.

"When am I ever wrong Granger?" He smirked at her and watched her for her reaction, feeling his heart race ever so slightly as she gave him that typical Granger look, that involved a raised brow and a condescending smile.

"Oh Malfoy, I don't have enough fingers to count how many times you've been wrong."

* * *

After the weekend, Draco and Hermione spent time trying to work out the best possible way to figure out what was going on in the house. A sneaky locator spell on Mandrake and three more of Bennetts associates- which Draco and Hermione had bravely risked going back to the pub on Knockturn Alley to cast- showed that they had all been visiting the house Draco and Hermione had followed Mandrake to the week before. Draco stared at the board himself and Granger had created two days before on the Monday. It had pictures, maps and connections all over it to try and make things a little easier to understand. He heard Granger's heels coming towards their desk a little faster this morning. He glanced round to find her rushing towards him with a smile on her face.

"What's got you so bright eyed and bushy tailed this morning, Granger?" He asked with a raised brow, watching as she quickly shrugged her coat off, the smile never leaving her face. Merlin, she looked even prettier when she was flashing that smile of hers, he thought. _What the fuck Draco, snap out of it you prick. _

"I have an idea, Malfoy, that's what." She said and she placed a bag on their desk. "I asked Harry if i could borrow it." She smiled as she pulled Harry's invisibility cloak from inside the bag. "I thought maybe we could try and get into the house or have a look around outside of it for any clues or information."

Draco sighed and looked up at her but Hermione spoke before he could.

"Look, Malfoy, i know it sounds dangerous but we have to do something. We know who is entering the house and we know that they arrive in the early evening and leave no later than midnight." Hermione looked at Draco pleading with her eyes for him to agree. Draco stared at her for a minute, thinking. She was going to get him killed if he wasn't careful.

"Granger, it just seems too risky." Draco sighed and rubbed his hand down his face. "We don't know the kind of wards and protections they have around that house. They aren't stupid, they definetly will."

"But Malfoy, we need to do something. Research is only going to get us so far. And as for the wards, well, we were both top of our class at Hogwarts, what makes you think we can't get through the wards?" He noticed she had that smart arse look on her face she always used to have in school, looking at him with her arms crossed like she knew better.

"I grew up with people like this Granger. They are powerful. What if there's blood wards?" Draco said and looked back at her with his signature sneer, he used to use on her at Hogwarts. He could sense her getting annoyed and he couldn't help but smirk. Something about watching Granger getting riled up always put a smirk on his face but recently it made his heart beat just that little bit faster.

"Then we will get as close as we can and try to find _something_." Hermione huffed. "Draco I'm going to this house tonight whether you like it or not. I know that there is something in that house that will lead us to Bennett and I'm going to find it."

Draco rolled his eyes. "You always have to be so bloody stubborn, Granger." He huffed, pushing his hair back off of his forehead.

Hermione smirked. "I thought you would know that by now, Draco Malfoy." She teased and shrugged off her coat and threw it over the back of her chair.

Draco smirked ever so slightly "We can go to the house tonight and observe some more. But we _are not_ aren't making any rash decisions until we know it's safe to do so."

"Fine, I'll meet you at eleven then." Hermione nodded at him and headed off to go get some tea. Malfoy watched as she walked away, her hips swaying ever so slightly below her small waist. Her hair was tied back in a messy bun but the little stray curls that refused to stay in placed bobbed as she moved. As she walked off she turned back and with a small smile on her face and Malfoy fumbled for something on his desk to make it look like he hadn't just been watching her. _What the fuck Draco. Pull yourself together. _

"Milk and two sugars, right Malfoy?" She grinned her typical Granger smile and he couldn't help the smile that appeared on his face when she looked at him like that. She was fucking gorgeous. _Fuck._

* * *

Malfoy waited at their set meeting point -outside Olivanders- that night. He shivered as the wind blew and he was glad he'd brought his scarf. He pulled the dark green wooly scarf more tightly around himself and smiled to himself when he heard the pop of apparation behind him. He turned around and seen Granger in her usual black coat and messy bun. Her black boots crunched on the frosty ground as she walked towards him. "Hey." She whispered. "Ready?" She smiled and Draco nodded. Her nose was red from the cold and her cheeks were rosey. Merlin, since when was this woman so delightfully pleasing to look at.

They started walking towards the house, keeping their head low, avoiding all attention. The streets were dark and quiet, minus a few people. Hermione grabbed Draco's arm and led him into an alleyway. Hermione pulled the cloak out from her bag and handed it to Draco.

"Ready?" She whispered and looked up into his grey eyes. He had nice eyes she thought. She had never seen someone with eyes quite like his. They were so very - Malfoy. A very light blue on the outside and then the colour faded gently into a pale grey. They were quite nice to look at from time to time.

Draco nodded "No rash decisions, Granger." He said "I don't want to have to tell the golden boys that you ended up dead because you couldn't keep your stubbornness at bay for one night." He huffed and stepped closer to Hermione, draping the cloak around both of them. Hermione rolled her eyes and scoffed at his comment.

They began walking the rest of the way to the house, Hermione in front and him behind her trying their best to keep their footsteps in time with each other so they wouldn't fall. Just as Draco thought they were getting the hang of it, Granger tripped and he quickly grabbed her waist and pulled her closer to his chest, steadying her.

"Thanks." She whispered. She felt a shiver go up her spine when she felt his hands on her waist. She didn't like how comforted she felt when he didn't move his hands away, but kept them there to keep her steady.

Draco felt a little panicked. He was so close to her now, he could smell her hair and he was enjoying it. The sweet scent of honey and rose tickled is senses and warmed his body up even more. This felt so wrong and right at the same time. Why were all these thoughts racing through his head. Why was enjoying the smell of her hair and having his hands on her waist and why did it feel like his body was on fire? He had to stop this. He cleared his throat and they continued carefully walking until they made it to the house.

Hermione stood and looked up at the building. It just looked like an ordinary house. There was nothing special or noticeable about it. Perhaps a good place to hide? She jumped ever so slightly when they heard heavy footsteps approaching and the pair watched as Mandrake made his way towards the front door. Hermione tugged Draco's arm urging him to walk with her so she could get slightly closer. When they got closer, Hermione realised the door didn't have a handle. It must be opened by a password or a spell. Perhaps if she heard a password or something they could have access to the house too. She cringed when she heard Mandrake say - a little too loud in her opinion to be saying passwords- the word _dumdloob_ and the door opened, allowing him to slip inside. Hermione grimaced. That wasn't even a proper word.

Draco felt Hermione tense up at the word and he swallowed hard. Hopefully that didn't remind her about who Draco used to be. He squeezed her waist gently. "Let's come back tomorrow, we have a way in now. Let's go in when we know no one is there and have a look around." He whispered and tried to lead her away, but she still resisted.

Hermione needed to know what was happening now. "_Draco_, we could get in there and find out what is going on right now." She huffed and wiggled out of his grip but he pulled her back before she could go anywhere and expose them from the safety of the invisibility cloak.

He remembered why she was so bloody annoying now. Why was she even trying to argue with him, outside a murderer and his team's hideout? This woman was going to get him killed.

"_Hermione_" He whispered copying her use of his first name. She turned slowly so that she could face them "If we go in there and get caught, we will both probably die. I'd like to survive my first proper case, thank you very much." He sighed and it was in that moment he realised just how close they were. Her nose was almost touching his. He felt like she was staring into his soul when she looked into his eyes. "Fine." She sighed a disappointed tone to her voice but she knew herself that it was too risky to go in right now.  
Draco nodded and started leading her away from the house. As soon as they were a safe distance away, they removed the robe and Hermione stuffed it in her bag. They both started walking along the road in silence. Draco noticed Hermione shivering next to him and sighed. _Stupid Griffindor doesn't know how to wrap up warm._

"Here." Draco said as he removed his scarf and gently wrapped it around Hermione's neck. Hermione looked up at him slightly surprised smile on her face. "We can't have you freezing to death just before this case starts getting interesting." He smirked at her.

"Oh really?" Hermione laughed a little. "Now I thought you could handle it yourself? Too big for your boots Malfoy?" She teased and gently poked his side. He laughed, shoving her away gently and shook his head and kept walking. "Thank you for the scarf, Malfoy." She whispered looking up at him and he just nodded, keeping his smirk to himself.

"So. We can meet in the office tomorrow and discuss a quick plan of action and then head back to the house." He said and looked down at Hermione for her approval.

Hermione laughed a bit "I think you love having a plan more than I do." She laughed and Malfoy just rolled his eyes at her. "How about you come to my place for awhile right now and we could make a plan? That way, we can get started straight away in the morning." She said and he rose a brow. He didn't know if anymore alone time with Granger was a good idea for his crazy mental state, considering some of the things he had thought about her that day. But then she looked at him in that typical Granger way and he couldn't say no. _Well, I mean it's what's best for the investigation. _Draco told himself.

* * *

Draco felt dizzy after Hermione had apparated them both to her flat without letting him know first.

"I wish you'd bloody tell me when you're going to do that." He huffed as he shrugged off his coat, enjoying the warmth of Hermione's flat. He looked around and rolled his eyes -It was so very Granger in here. A large bookshelf graced one of the walls with books organised neatly on the shelves and the place smelled like roses and vanilla- just like her. It was quaint but it was cosy. It looked just like what he imagined a home. He never really felt like he ever had a home.

Hermione laughed a bit and nodded and took off her coat and hung that and draco's scarf up. "Apologies ferret, do you want a cup of tea? Or i could make some hot chocolate?" She said and headed into the kitchen.

"I think I'll stick with tea. I don't want any of that crazy muggle stuff." He said and Hermione rolled her eyes. She had never heard of hot chocolate being described as 'crazy' before.

"Suit yourself." She mumbled. After she made the drinks she brought them out and plopped down next to Draco on her sofa, who was already laying out all their notes and research on her coffee table. This felt odd. It was the strangest, oxymoronic situation. Hermione- the Gryffindor princess- was sitting with Draco Malfoy- former death eater- _working together_ to figure out what serial killer and evil wizard Bennet was up to. And in all honesty Hermione wasn't hating the situation. She was quite enjoying it actually. She was shocked at how easily she forgot about Draco's past actions. She used to loathe him. Now, she actually quite enjoyed his company. Merlin, she even felt safe when she was around him. She would _never_ let him know any of this though.

After a couple of hours of planning and several cups of tea, they decided on a plan for the morning and a on a backup plan, just in case something went wrong. It was all very risky but they both knew it was a necessary evil if they wanted to make any more progress.

Hermione huffed and stared at the piece of paper in front of her that she had jotted the password down on. Something was bothering her about it. _Dumdloob_. What did it mean? Who would just make up a word? It had to mean _something_.

"There's something bothering me about this password. I mean, what is it? What does it mean?" Hermione huffed and pushed the stray curls around her face behind her ears. Draco looked at her and rolled his eyes.

"Granger, it's a made up word. It probably doesn't mean anything significant." Draco said taking a sip of his cup of tea.

Hermione couldn't help but stare at the word, though. She was racking her brain. Something was really bothering her about it. And then she had a realisation and she felt her skin crawl. "Oh my God. Shit." She jumped up grabbing her notebook and flicking through it quickly, landing on the page with Bennett's victims information listed.

"Granger?" Draco looked at her confused as she maniacally started looking through notes and files.

"Malfoy, we've not been paying enough attention to the victims." She said almost breathless. "What do all these victims have in common?" She looked up at Draco and handed him the file with all of the victims' information listed. He looked up at her clueless "I don't know Granger." He said trying not to let her panicked facial expression panic him.

"Draco, the password is an anagram. If you move the letters around you get-" She quickly wrote it down next to the actual password and handed it to him. Draco felt dread sweep over him and he swallowed hard as he read it.

"_Mudblood_." He said and Granger's screams echoed in his head from that day in the manor.

Hermione frowned. "All the victims are muggle borns." She said. Her heart was pounding with fear and dread. It was like the past was coming back to haunt her. She felt the word burning on her arm under her sleeve and she had to take a deep breath to calm herself.

"Draco, Bennet is killing muggle-borns."


End file.
